My mother’s people immigrated to the United States from Wales and Ireland in the mid-1800s. They came as coal miners and farmers and ended up in the Plains, where my grandparents farmed wheat. My dad’s folks were here long before then, having been brought in servitude from Scotland when this land was part of the British Empire. From the Ozarks, they gradually moved to the central Plains. My parents met working at Boeing.
My ancestors were the salt of the earth, literally part of the foundation of our national greatness. They helped create a country rightly perceived as a land flowing with milk and honey, having streets paved with gold. That perception still lingers. Liberty, prosperity, and peace are ours. Modest, regulated immigration will sustain it.
The majority (about 2/3) of illegal immigrants in this country came for a short visit and never left. More than 10 million apply for temporary visas every year. Between 20% and 30%, who are not able to convince a consular officer at our embassies abroad that they have sufficiently strong ties to their homeland to bring them back, do not receive visas.
Those that did promised to return and, in order to be admitted upon entry, promised to leave within their allotted timeframe. They lied – just like the vast majority claiming asylum, which is legally limited to those with a credible fear of official persecution, not just bad living conditions, no matter how poor or crime-ridden.
They broke the law when they overstayed, and break it again every day they overstay, every day they work without permission, and every day they use someone else’s identity or social security number to obtain work, welfare, subsidized health insurance coverage, or any federal or state benefits reserved for citizens and legal residents. Those sneaking across the border (the other 1/3) start out here as criminals.
Citizens of 39 countries that have low overstay numbers do not need visas to come for a short visit.........To Read More...
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